1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a method of forming a perforated cut line by a cutting plotter, and more particularly to a method of forming a sheet with perforations along a cut line which is predetermined or defined on the sheet and along which the sheet is to be cut out, to thereby provide an article suitable for use as an apparel paper pattern, a bag or the like.
2. Description of Related Art
Conventionally, cutting plotters of the paper moving type (X-moving pen carriage type: vertical or horizontal type) and the flat-bed type (XY-moving pen carriage type: horizontal type) have been proposed, each of which includes a pen carriage arranged so as to be movable in X and Y directions relative to a sheet put on a recording surface and provided with a cutter. The so-constructed cutting plotters are each used in such a manner that the sheet is put on the recording surface and then the pen carriage is relatively moved above the sheet in the X and Y directions with respect to the sheet as desired while the cutter is contactedly pressed onto the sheet at a predetermined cutter pressure, so that the sheet is cut out into a desired configuration.
In the cutting plotter of the vertical type, the sheet is moved on the recording surface in the Y direction by means of a combination of a grit roller and a pinch roller arranged as a pair in the vertical direction while being interposed between both rollers, resulting in the pen carriage being relatively moved with respect to the sheet. Such construction of the paper moving type cutting plotter, when a part of the sheet is cut as a round piece out of the sheet, causes the cut part to be separated from the remaining part of the sheet interposedly held between the grit roller and the pinch roller, resulting in the transmission of drive force of the grit roller and/or pinch roller to the cut part failing. Unfortunately, this causes a jamming phenomenon so that the sheet being cut is complicatedly deformed and folded on the recording surface.
Such a jamming phenomenon is likewise encountered with the flat-bed type cutting plotter. More particularly, in the flat-bed type cutting plotter, the sheet is securely positioned on the recording surface by fixing the corners of the sheet to the recording surface by using a fixing means such as an adhesive tape or the like. Unfortunately, when a part of the sheet is cut as a round piece out of the sheet, this cutting method causes the cut part to be separated or released from the remaining part of the sheet held on the recording surface by the fixing means, so that the remaining part is moved in all directions because the cutter forcedly pushes it, also resulting in the jamming phenomenon occurring.
In view of the above disadvantage of the conventional paper moving type and flat-bed type cutting plotters, an improved cutting plotter is proposed which is constructed so as to intermittently provide the sheet with unperforated parts of a small length at predetermined intervals along a cut line which is described on the sheet and along which the sheet is to be subsequently cut out, to thereby form the sheet with perforations along the cut line of the sheet, resulting in a perforated cut line. The sheet is cut out into a desired shape such as a circular shape or the like depending upon the shape of the perforated cut line in a subsequent step. The cutting may be carried out manually.
The improved cutting plotter is divided into two types of plotters, a paper moving type and a flat-bed type. The paper moving type cutting plotter is constructed so that the driving force of a grit roller and/or a pinch roller for interposedly holding the remaining part of the sheet other than a part of the sheet to be subsequently cut out is positively continuously transmitted, during the perforation forming operation, to the part of the sheet to be subsequently cut out into a circular shape or the like. Also, the flat-bed type cutting plotter takes a measure of fixing the part of the sheet to be cut out into a circular shape or the like onto the recording surface through the remaining part of the sheet by means of an adhesive tape or the like during the perforation forming operation. After the sheet is formed with the perforated cut line as described above, the unperforated parts of the perforated cut line of the sheet may be manually laterally cut or broken to separate the cut part of the sheet from the remaining part of the sheet.
The formation of the perforations along the cut line predetermined or defined on the sheet by means of the formerly improved paper moving type or flat-bed type cutting plotter is carried out by stopping the movement of the cutter relative to the sheet along the cut line at predetermined time intervals while contactedly pressing the cutter onto the sheet, and by raising the cutter above the sheet during the stopping period. Then, the cutter is moved a micro distance along the cut line on the sheet relative to the sheet to form the sheet with an unperforated part along the cut line. Then, during the period of the next stopping, the cutter is lowered for the subsequent perforation motion. Such procedure is repeated to form the sheet with a number of perforations at predetermined intervals along the cut line, resulting in the perforated cut line being formed.
Unfortunately, the repeating of vertical movement of the cutter at the predetermined time intervals to form the perforations and unperforated parts along the cut line on the sheet requires much time, so that operating efficiency substantially deteriorates.